An estimated 400,000 people took to the streets of Tel Aviv on Saturday night, September 3, 2011 in what seems to be by far the largest demonstration in the history of Israel. Saturday's rally was the highlight of a social protest that has swept the country for two months.
Kikar Ha'Medina (State Square), the largest plaza in the city, was filled to capacity with hundreds of thousands of protesters marched from Rothschild Boulevard, a fashionable street which has been the site of a tent city for the last two months. The first tents were a protest against Israel's high housing prices, but the weekly demonstrations have on Israel's socio-economic problems. Many carried signs complaining about privatisation - Israel's once heavily state-run economy has been heavily privatized.